Tag Archives: Senior phase

Currie Community High: A shared vision for all learners⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

Currie Community High is a very forward-thinking school, which underpins all developments with the principles of good curriculum design, effective learning and teaching, and partnerships (HGIOS 4). These partnerships and networks, including social media, have allowed them to drive forward the progression for their students into a positive destination – with 99.2% of school leavers at Currie Community High School going into either FE, HE or employment.

The vision has grown from the establishment of a strategy group in 2016-2017 with representatives from all faculties, including Pupil Support and Support for Learning, who aimed to identify strengths and areas to develop and implement DYW, including discussion with the leadership team. These key areas then influenced their three-year strategy and the opportunities they now offer, as part of their curriculum that develops the young workforce.

They continue to reflect and develop, using data through baseline testing with S1, S3 and S5 (every two/three years), to lead and develop creative and innovative opportunities for students, including :

 

S3 STEM Networking Event

WOW (World of Work) Week

To enhance their curriculum offerings, they are working as an SCQF Ambassador School, raising awareness of different levels of qualifications and how they can influence an individual student’s learning journey. Included in this are  work-based learning opportunities, including Foundation Apprenticeships and work placements. They have created a series of webpages to share information and opportunities with students and parents, while being an effective tool to engage partners.

Each department has conducted an evaluation, through using a revised tool, constructed from the Education Scotland’s CES Learning Resources, to reflect on the teacher/practitioner entitlements. Each department identified two or three areas that need developing as part of their improvement planning. Through their customised CLPL, ’Staff Industry Insight Sessions’, work to meet these development needs, along with industry support and partners such as Scotland’s Enterprising Schools (SES).

Through each year, they work to raise awareness with staff, students, parents and partners on the importance of a curriculum that develops the young workforce.

All of their opportunities embed the Career Education Standards (CES) (3-18) and their own Skills Framework (based on BTC 4: Skills for Learning, Life and Work), giving students the opportunity to become more aware of where their learning, skills and subject choices will lead them on their learning journey.

Once piece of advice that Currie Community High offer:

“manage the workload of staff and members of the strategy group, it is vital that someone has the strategic responsibility for driving DYW forward, however it does not solely sit with them, allowing the sustainable development and longevity of DYW beyond 2021. For this to be sustainable, support from partners for opportunities, including financial support, will allow this to grow and embed for years and students to come!” John Schmidt DYW Lead

Currie Community High have a major focus on skills and careers awareness (CES) which begins from P7 (as part of transitions) to S3, which engages parents, along with plans to expand this throughout the Senior Phase. They are currently reviewing their work placement strategy through utilising the Education Scotland Work Placement Benchmarking tool, based on data and student voice, to provide tailored opportunities for individual pathways. After the successes over the last 3 years, from 2019-20 they are moving forward as a cluster to develop a new ‘Currie Cluster DYW Strategy Group’.

Quotations from young people

S1: ‘I feel inspired to create my own bookstore and read more’

S1: ‘Getting a job or the right person for a job is very competitive’

S2: ‘I learnt about how teamwork is important in real life’

S2: ‘I had a chance to explore different jobs in a calm and free environment’

S3: ‘I learnt about tactics of persuasion and how to trade and invest’

S3: ‘Some parent/carer jobs are high level, which made me think about what I needed to do’

S5/6: ‘I want to go to college and it was great way to see what the different options are for me’

Curriculum for Gaelic (Learners) and A 1+2 Approach to Languages⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

e-Sgoil is an interactive, real-time teaching facility which uses Glow, Office 365 and V-scene to support the teaching of Gaelic and through Gaelic in any school in Scotland. This supports the curriculum for 1+2 Approach to Languages, Gaelic Learner and Gaelic Medium Education. A short promotional video is available here:

http://bit.ly/2Nhvm2F

e-Sgoil is currently inviting expressions of interest for teaching National 5 Gaelic (Learners) from August 2019. This may be to provide progression with the 1+2 Approach to Languages, or to enable learners to access Gaelic as a new subject.

Support for self-evaluation

Advice to support implementation of 1+2 and challenge questions

Case study and challenge questions on improving the secondary GME and GLE curriculum

Statutory Guidance on Gaelic Education

A review of e-Sgoil’s first year of operation is available here:

http://e-sgoil.com/media/1133/e-sgoil-report-year-1-june-2018.pdf

 

For more information, please contact e-sgoil@gnes.net or phone 01851 822850.

Senior Phase Programme, a school-college partnership.⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

Glasgow City Council Employability Support Team have an effective school-college partnership. The programme currently supports over 1000 young people and provides support to ensure that all young people are supported toward a career pathway.

There are two strands:

SCQF Levels 1-3
SCQF Levels 4-7

Links have been developed with the local colleges to provide a wide range of different courses and levels in order to showcase the wide range of career pathways. Open days and information evenings help to involve parents/carers in the decision making process. Extensive recruitment policy has been extended this year to include further meet the expert evenings for young people and their parents/carers. The recruitment is reviewed, evaluated and modified to ensure the information provided allows young people to choose an option that suits their career pathway.

They currently have successful partnerships with:

Glasgow Kelvin College
Glasgow Clyde College
City of Glasgow College
RSBI Blindcraft

All of the courses have support in place to ensure that every young person has the opportunity to have a successful outcome. There is an online application process that is supported by the school and helps to match young people to a course that suits their career pathway.

Some key points:

Linked programme with East Dunbartonshire and East Renfrewshire.

College has a rigorous attendance management procedures to ensure that young people are able to achieve a successful outcome on the course. There is a wide range of courses and levels, currently  SCQF 1-7. This provides an inclusive programme and promotes an ethos that every young person has the opportunity to experience college at an early stage. There is an online portal which provides school with a support and tracking mechanism to ensure that young people are progressing during the programme. Schools and college partners have worked together to ensure that the reporting tool is relevant for both school and college. Learner journeys are reported each year to promote the positive links between school and college.

Courses have extensive ASN support and a range of the options are designed to effectively showcase college as a potential career pathway and to aid transition from school to further education. Taster sessions are used to ensure that they have the correct match of young person and course. The opportunity to experience what is involved has helped to improve the course outcomes.

Schools have harmonised their timetabling to ensure that young people have the programme as an option in their subject choice selection. The majority of the courses take place on Tuesday and Thursday afternoon however some courses have extended timetables and this allows for a varied range of options.

Transport is arranged for the young person and most choose public transport which is subsidised by the programme. This encourages independent travel and ensures that cost of travel is not a factor when young people are deciding on their participation.

Some key statistics from the previous cohort:
1080 young people participating in the programme
7 different providers
96% sustained a positive destination

The programme will continue to work with schools and colleges to provide young people with a wide range of senior phase options.

Some comments about the programme:

“I like it because it is “hands on and specialising in various areas of computing”
Senior Phase Student

“Course designed to prepare student for the construction industry. Learning split between the workshop and the classroom”
Lecturer

“I am developing new skills every day”
Senior Phase Student

“I enjoyed this because I was able to learn to cook lots of different dishes that I had not cooked before”
Senior Phase Student

“All Glasgow Colleges are fully committed to delivering Glasgow’s Senior Phase School/College programme. We will create new opportunities for all young people to embed high quality work-related learning in their curriculum with progression to further learning, training or work. Whatever your gender, background or level these programmes offer a learning experience that may inspire you to develop new skills for the changing world of work.”
Eric Brownlie
Assistant Principal Quality and Performance
Glasgow Clyde College

NQ Support Materials Update⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

The NQ support materials for Gàidhlig, Gaelic(Learners) and subjects and courses through the medium of Gaelic, previously hosted on the Education Scotland National Qualifications website are now available on our professional learning community for Gaelic education on Yammer.

It should be noted that these resources no longer fully match the SQA course specifications. However, they do provide a range of useful support on approaches to effective learning, teaching and ongoing classroom assessment, should teachers wish to use them. You will find these resources here.

A glow login is required to access Yammer and membership of the group is also required.

Senior phase GME curriculum: Foundation Apprenticeships⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

Foundation Apprenticeships in Social Services – Children and Young People

Are you considering pathways in the senior phase for young people learning through the medium of Gaelic?

This Foundation Apprenticeship is available through the medium of Gaelic for young people in S5 and S6 . It can be studied  over a period of one or two years, starting in S5 or S6.

Sabhal Mòr Ostaig offers a partnership with schools to deliver this foundation apprenticeship. Delivery is organised to suit the school’s timetable. Young people will be taught by a college lecturer from Sabhal Mòr Ostaig. A range of online learning materials will be used  support young people in their studies.

A video sharing a pupil’s experience of the foundation apprenticeship, as well as additional information is available here:

http://www.smo.uhi.ac.uk/en/cursaichean/preantasachd/

More advice on the GME senior phase is available here:

https://education.gov.scot/improvement/documents/gael3-9secondarystages.pdf

A case study on improving the secondary curriculum and challenge questions to support planning are available here:

https://education.gov.scot/improvement/self-evaluation/improving-the-secondary-curriculum-for-gme

Information on e-sgoil, a digital teaching platform to support the GME curriculum is available here:

Permalink: https://blogs.glowscotland.org.uk/glowblogs/eslb/2018/09/10/curriculum-for-gle-and-gme/

Gaelic version of e-Sgoil’s live narrative project now available⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

Education Scotland has published the Gaelic version of e-Sgoil’s live narrative project here:

https://education.gov.scot/improvement/practice-exemplars/live-narrative-project

This project outlines e-Sgoil’s virtual learning approach to overcoming barriers to learning across a range of local authorities and aspects of pedagogy​. It is intended to assist senior leaders and teachers  with improving practice through the medium of Gaelic and English.

 

A PIONEERING project in the Borders to help school pupils experience the workplace has hit the small screen⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

Developing Young Workforce (DYW) Borders celebrated their second birthday by releasing a series of videos to showcase the impact they’ve made.

Business owners, teachers and pupils have all taken part in the filming.

Callum Weston, a sixth year pupil at Earlston High, discussed his experiences of the DYW programme.

He said: “One of the sessions I attended was welcoming and a really fun way to learn about career option from people other than teachers at school.”

The programme, which is a Scottish Government initiative that aims to bridge the gap between industry and education, has led to over 15,000 pupils attending one or more of the 130 events which DYW Borders have been involved in.

While the numbers are impressive, it is the response from the those involved that better demonstrates the positive impact of the programme.

Pauline Grigor is a parent of a pupil at Galashiels Academy. She said: “DYW Borders has been a huge help to me and my son, who has a rare medical condition.

“We worked together with the programme team to pull together a bespoke work experience plan for my son.

“This has had an amazing impact on his confidence. So much so that he has even started a part-time job. I don’t think he’d ever have managed this prior to the work experience arranged by DYW Borders.”

Educational professionals have also been quick to voice support for the programme.

Bruce Aitchison, Deputy Head Teacher at Hawick High School, said: “DYW Border is a great way for us to educate our young people on their future career options.”

The series of videos were released on January 9 – exactly two years after the initiative arrived in the Borders.

Reflecting on the success over the last two years, DYW manager Sara Ward added: “Year two for DYW Borders has been a remarkable success, really building on the solid foundations of year one.

“We have engaged with more young people, established strong working relations with more businesses and strengthened our links with those in education.

“The entire team of staff and volunteers are proud to have achieved so much across the region as part of this national programme, and we look forward to doing even more in 2019

Role of mentoring in languages⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

Researchers at the University of Cardiff have published a report on an initiative encouraging students to take up modern languages. It considers the role that mentoring, and in particular online mentoring, can have in addressing the decline in modern foreign languages  learning at GCSE level in Wales.

Comann nam Pàrant newsletter⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

Comann nam Pàrant, the national organisation that advises and supports parents/carers of those in Gaelic Medium Education (GME), have published their latest newsletter.

The newsletter provides a useful update, including:

  • Learning together, 2018 – 2021: Scotland’s national action plan on parental involvement, parental engagement, family learning and learning at home.
  • A new foundation apprenticeship through the medium of Gaelic entitled, Social Services: Children and Young People
  • National standardised assessments for Gaelic Medium Education(GME): Measaidhean Coitcheann Nàiseanta Gàidhlig (MCNG).
  • Expansion of GME in local authorities.
  • Comann nam Pàrant’s offer of a school trip to support the development of language skills
  • New television programmes for children to support Gaelic language learning

Please continue to read

Foundation Apprenticeships: Preparing Young People for the World of Work⤴

from @ Education Scotland's Learning Blog

Skills Development Scotland has developed the Foundation Apprenticeship programme, in partnership with education and industry, to provide work-based learning opportunities to prepare young people for the world of work.

These are now featuring the senior phase curriculum in most secondary schools in Scotland.  Young people have the option to select a Foundation Apprenticeship as one of their subject choices and complete the qualification over one or two years, usually starting in S5 or S6, . The difference is that young people spend time away from school at a local learning provider, such as a college and with an employer to get a real, practical work placement which will give their career a head start and looks great on their CV.
A Foundation Apprenticeship is a chance to try a career out  to decide if it’s right for them.  Whatever young people want to do after school – straight into work, onto a Modern or Graduate Apprenticeship or to college or university – a Foundation Apprenticeship can open up their options.

Watch this clip to find out more about FAs:  youtube.com/scottishapprenticeship

Foundation Apprenticeships are designed by employers to ensure the qualification and skills young people develop throughout are what are needed for the world of work. Employers therefore help shape the next generation of talent and build the skills they require for their future career pathways .   At the same time Foundation Apprenticeships allow employers to spot talented, motivated learners who could become their future employees.

For more information on Foundation Apprenticeships visit  apprenticeships.scot/foundation or follow  @apprentice_scot .

FA PowerPoint presentation: